Master's student Kortney Rupp has been selected by the Special Libraries Association (SLA) as recipient of the 2017 Marion E. Sparks Award. This award provides funding to attend the 2017 SLA Annual Conference, which will be held June 16-20 in Phoenix, Arizona. This annual conference allows participants to develop essential skills, network with colleagues, and explore noteworthy trends in knowledge and information management.
"Attending national meetings for professional organizations is the best way to meet your colleagues and learn about current challenges facing the field," said Rupp. "I am excited to receive this award in honor of Marion E. Sparks because of her impact in chemical information literacy and her legacy as a chemistry librarian at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign."
Rupp is passionate about chemical information literacy and effective data management habits in chemistry research. She is a graduate assistant for the Physical Sciences and Engineering Division of the University of Illinois Library, working at Grainger Engineering Library and Information Center. She also serves as current president of the iSchool's SLA student group.
"Given her leadership of the SLA Student Group this year and the depth of her academic preparation in chemistry, Kortney is well positioned to become involved in the activities of SLA's Chemistry Division. It is especially fitting that the award she is receiving is named in honor of Marion E. Sparks, who served as chemistry librarian at Illinois a century ago," said Linda C. Smith, professor and associate dean for academic affairs, who wrote a letter in support of Rupp's nomination.
Rupp is the recipient of other noteworthy awards, including the 2017 American Chemical Society (ACS) Publications Travel Award, 2013 Women Chemists Committee (WCC) Overcoming Challenges Award, and 2012 ACS Student Leadership Award. She holds a BA in chemistry from Monmouth College and an MS in analytical chemistry from Purdue University. She will complete her MS degree in library and information science in May and begin work as the chemical information librarian at the University of California, Berkeley, in June.